About Osteopathy

Osteopathy is a patient focused, hands on form of manipulative primary care medicine, aimed at restoring, maintaining and promoting physical wellbeing.

Primarily, treatment takes the form of manual therapy involving massage, mobilisation and manipulation for the treatment of musculoskeletal problems. We are trained to make an accurate diagnosis and treatment plan without prior need for orthodox medical opinion or referral.

Osteopaths place emphasis on the function, biomechanics, movement and mobility of the body and in particular that of the spine, cranium, nerves, muscles, discs and supporting connective tissues. This is clearly reflected in the distinct way in which we assess and treat our patients, taking care to recognise the holistic nature of the way the body works in unison, each part affecting the function of another.

As Osteopaths, we not only target the site of pain, but also the causes of your pain, taking into account general health, posture, occupational stresses, sports, general fitness levels and diet and look at how these factors impact the diagnosis, treatment and prognosis.

We use a highly developed sense of touch, or palpation, to establish an understanding of the tissues and joints and use this to monitor your progress through treatment.

How can Osteopathy help me?

There are many benefits to be gained from osteopathic treatment.

The most obvious is a reduction in your pain but you should also see an improvement in your range of movement, quite often beyond that which you may have previously considered your "normal" as the techniques we use start to make changes to the deeper tissues in and around your joints.

Lots of patients also find a postual benefit and that they can reduce the pain medication they are taking, frequently returning to work, sport and daily activities faster as a result of treatment. In fact, our patients confirm this to us is in the regular annonymised in-clinic surveys we perfom which help us monitor the quality of service we provide to all our patients.

Having established a process of improvement, I will prescribe various self-help measures for you to be able to take control of your problem so that re-occurence is less likely and you become less reliant on treatment.

Conditions we can help with

Do you see your problem listed here?

General acute and chronic lower back (lumbar) pain

Sciatica

Fibromyalgia

Lumbago

Uncomplicated mechanical neck pain

Muscle Spasm

Headache arising from the neck (cervicogenic) / migraine prevention

Tension

Frozen shoulder / shoulder pain

Shoulder girdle pain

Arthritic pain

Rheumatic pain

Tennis elbow

Joint pains including lumbago

Cramp

Minor sports injuries

If so we can probably assist you. Call us for a chat to discuss your problem or to book in for an appointment.

This list of conditions is dictated by Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) guidelines.

If your pain or condition is not listed here please contact us for an opinion as to whether we might be able to help.

Who regulates the Osteopathic Profession?

In 1993 the Osteopaths Act was passed by Parliament which meant that the osteopathic profession moved from a purely voluntary code of practice to one which was regulated in the law by a new statutory body, the General Osteopathic Council (GOsC), whose role it is to set, maintain and develop professional standards.

The title "Osteopath" was also protected so that only those who registered with the GOsC were entitled to call themselves such; by implication, any person using the title is fully trained and is working to the highest standards. They will be of good character, fit to practice and will be fully insured to do so, abiding by a strict code of practice as set out by GOsC.

After wide ranging consultations with relevant bodies, this code has recently been reviewed and amended to reflect the demands and expectations of patients in the modern day.

What to expect from your osteopath

Patients consulting us are entitled to recieve a high standard of professional care. You should therefore expect us to:

Make your care our priority

Treat you with respect

Involve you in decisions about your care

Respond promptly to your concerns

What does NICE say about Osteopathy?

In the recent past, NICE, the National Institute of Clinical Excellence, which advises the government about best medical practice, has developed guidelines for the treatment of lower back pain and has recommended manipulation as performed by Osteopaths as a beneficial therapy for this painful condition and has also acknowledged it's cost effectiveness to the NHS. The government wishes to increase patient choice in all areas of treatment and this development could see osteopathy being offered more widely.

More latterly, NICE has indicated that more than one million people in Britain may be suffering from constant, crippling headaches simply because they are taking too many pain killers for all sorts of pain, ironically including headache, and may be inadvertently making things worse. This side-effect can go on for up to 3 months after ceasing their analgesics.

The Institute of Osteopathy states that tension-type and neck related headaches are the most common form of headache. Osteopathy can help treat this type of problem and we will also consider other factors such as posture, exercise, work station and driving position whilst seeking to find the underlying cause of the tension and stiffness, reducing the reliance on pain-killers.